The Ghost Of You
by Evil Sprinkle
Summary: Klaus lived a normal life until he met Damon Salvatore. He is drawn into a life of crime, a roller coaster ride that he doesn't want to get off. His stop is abrupt and unexpected - he falls for Caroline Forbes. He draws her in and she chooses to join him on his ride, but a romantic indiscretion on his part derails the cart, sending him into a downward spiral. NO HAPPY ENDING HERE!


**Disclaimer: I own nothing but a warped imagination and weird sense of humour.**

**A/N: **_**My brain did a fart…This was inspired by Kelly Clarkson's 'Never Again'**_

**WARNING! This story does not have a happy ending. It's not some beautiful romance, it's kind of dark, it contains Klaus cheating, if you don't want to read that, click the 'x' in the corner and move on.**

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><p>Niklaus Mikaelson was once a normal man who lived a normal life. He had a nine-to-five job that paid the bills, a rent controlled apartment, a couple of a close friends and a serious talent when it came to art. But one night six years ago, it all changed. He was walking home from a bar one night when he was cornered by a pale man. At first Klaus had thought he was going to be mugged, but it wasn't until the stranger extended his hand and said he'd been watching him, that Klaus knew his life would never be the same.<p>

The stranger introduced himself as Damon Salvatore, leader of one of the largest crime factions in America. They were well known for their no nonsense way of doing business, their large drug smuggling rings and members who thought with their fits. A year down the line, Klaus was drawn into their world and came to accept his new life. It wasn't long after before he came to love it.

He had more money than he could have ever dreamt of, his work could never be classed as boring, he had friends who he knew he could trust with his life, he had the apartment of his dreams, plenty of time to spend on his art and an endless supply of women to keep him entertained. He spent most of his nights in bars looking for women who met his tastes. Once he found his target he would approach and offer to buy her a drink. This would then lead to him seducing her and taking her back to his apartment where he would use her to fulfil his needs before getting rid of her with fake promises that he'd give her a call. His life went on this way for quite some time until one night a spanner was thrown in the works.

Niklaus fell in love.

Her name was Caroline Forbes, a beautiful girl with golden curls, perfect creamy skin and sparkling blue eyes. He bought her a drink, intending on doing the same as he always did, but there was something about her, something that drew him in deep. He took her back to his apartment but once he had her there, he found himself not wanting her to leave. He actually took her number and called her the very next day, despite his inner conscience mocking him for coming across as needy. They met up at the same bar for a few months, went on dinner dates, took walks in the park – learning every little detail there was to know about each other. One night while they were in bed, Klaus made the decision to truly let her in. He told her hi secret.

He'd expected her to be scared and attempt to run away, but instead she told him she didn't care, she wanted to be him regardless of what his job led him to do. He knew it was selfish, but she wanted it just as much as he did, so the next day he helped her pack up her life, leave everything she once knew behind and moved her into his apartment and into his life of crime.

His life finally felt complete. He had his life-partner, a nice apartment and a loyal group of friends/co-workers to help him protect it. The happiness didn't last forever as it was soon turned upside-down and scattered across the pavement. One cold night as his usual bar, Klaus met another woman, but not just any woman, the daughter of their enemies – The Petrova's. Tatia Petrova was gorgeous to say the least, long shiny dark locks, olive skin and deep brown eyes. Without a second thought to consequences of his actions he took her back to his place—knowing Caroline was out for the night—and thus it began.

At the time he hadn't intended for it to get this far, he'd expected a one night thing, but it turned into more. Every time Caroline wasn't around she would come and visit him, the two of them slipping between the sheets. He became closer to her as she pulled him in, trapping him in her father's plans, turning him into a spy for her father and his men. Klaus couldn't escape. At first he'd unknowing divulged information, being too caught up in the heat of passion to realise exactly what he was saying, but then there was no way he could say no. If he left her, he would be killed, if he stayed with her his own gang would soon find out and kill him.

It wasn't long before it all became too much for him to handle, too much responsibility, too much of a secret. Tatia became more demanding, wanting to see him all the time, asking him to leave Caroline and come join her, but he couldn't. Despite everything he loved Caroline, Tatia was nothing more than a fascination that he told himself would eventually pass. As the pressure mounted he became sloppy – the letters he and Tatia exchanged were soon carelessly tossed into his drawer for anyone to find; for Caroline to find…and she did. She confronted him about Tatia, waved the letters around in his face. He knew she wasn't stupid, he knew he couldn't lie his way out of it – so he told her the truth.

He told her it was a mistake, told her he was drunk and how one night as all it took for him to become trapped. He told her he was pretending to be on the Petrova's side, pretending he was spying for them so he could protect them both. He told her he still loved her more than anything. Much to his surprise she chose to believe him, but their relationship wasn't the same. It became strained, Caroline was suspicious, monitoring his every move, questioning everything. He moved them to a different part of town in an attempt to shake Tatia, tried to tell her it was over, but he just couldn't. She was an itch he just _had_ to scratch. When things went really sour, he and Caroline were barely on speaking terms and had taken to sleeping in separate apartments. She told him she couldn't bring herself to sleep beside him or near him, but despite all his deceit, she still loved him. She wanted to leave, but she knew she couldn't. She'd willingly accepted this life and there was no way they would just let her walk away. She knew too much, she was too far involved. It was around a month later when everything finally came to a head.

**~**~Present~**~**

"What do you mean it's taken care of?" Caroline asked, turning to look at her partner. She didn't understand how something so complicated, something that had been going on for years could be _'taken care of'_ just like that.

"I told you…that's it. It's done." He answered, not able to bring himself to look at her.

Caroline shook her head in disbelief. "Just like that?" she asked, still not able to get her head around it.

Klaus' fists were clenched. Yes. Just like that.

He walked over to the large window on the far side of the apartment. It was night, the moon was nothing but a silver coin in the sky, high above the city. He braced himself, hands on the windowsill and closed his eyes.

"So, what exactly do we do now, Klaus?" Caroline interrupted the silence. The firelight caught the corner of the large sapphire set in silver ring on her finger and she looked away with mild disgust. She couldn't believe how something that once filled her with so much joy, now made her stomach churn.

"_I hope that ring you gave to her turns her finger green_." Her voice reached his ears, her thick accent nothing but a cold whisper.

A shiver ran down his spine. Her presence was intoxicating. "We leave," he said without turning around. "We need to leave as soon as possible."

"_I hope when you're in bed with her_," he turned away from the sound of that voice. "_You think of me_—"

"No." Caroline's legs gave way beneath her as she slumped onto the sofa. "How can you say that? After everything." How could he just expect her to run? She'd willingly joined his life of crime under promises of protection and stability, but now he wanted her to just run? To spend the rest of her life trying to escape from the same people they once classed as family.

"—_And when she's moaning your name…you're wishing it was me_."

Klaus took a heavy breath inwards. They had to get out before things got worse, before the whole truth came out. They had to get out before they were caught and forced to answer for their crimes…or rather before he was caught. "We have no choice left, love."

"_Now I would never wish bad things_," that other voice said in mild amusement. She was settled on the sofa on the other side of the room across from Caroline. Her mouth twisted into a sadistic smile, her eyes filled with sadness and anger. "_But I certainly don't wish you well…I hope you're made to pay for what you did_."

"That's cruel!" Klaus shouted.

"Are you alright, Klaus?" Caroline sat looking at him peculiarly, her arms folded across her chest and a frown consuming her face. He hated seeing her frown. There was a time when she was always smiling the brightest of smiles and that smile was became of him. He hated that he was the reason for her ever dimming light.

He looked back to the sofa but she had moved. He ran a hand though his hair. "I'm fine. We just need to leave."

"You said that once before, but we're not going anywhere until you answer me," she took a deep breath and took the plunge. She had to know. "I found another one of her letters you tried to hide in your room." The words rolled uneasily off her tongue.

"_Idiot_," she mocked. "_You kept them_?" she was by the window, leaning casually against it, examining her fingernails. She laughed. "_I burnt yours_."

Klaus turned abruptly to face Caroline. "I haven't wrote anymore letters." He said, but his tone was unsure. Things had been going on for so long and gotten so complicated that he couldn't remember they'd exchanged anymore letters since the last time. "You went through my room? You were in there alone?" he changed the subject, she wasn't entirely blameless in his eyes. She told him she trusted him, obviously she lied.

Caroline's fists clenched. Of all the things he could say. "Apparently _she_ was in there too, although most-likely not alone." She sneered.

The woman across the room snorted in an un-lady-like manner, not looking up from her nails.

"I can't pretend like this anymore." Caroline declared. What was the point in up-heaving everything just to pretend to everyone that things were okay between them, when in reality everything they knew was crumbling around them.

"Tatia and I are done," he stated firmly, his eyes flashing with an emotion she didn't recognise as he imagined his room; the sanctity. The door that lead to his bathroom. Inside that bathroom the large freestanding tub with the black marble inlay.

"I know that's a lie!" Caroline cried in despair. She couldn't believe him, not anymore. She'd believed him the last time he swore they were through.

"_Go on Niklaus_." Tatia quipped from beside the fireplace. "_Give her that answer you always gave me, try and make it all okay_." The firelight danced in her eyes in an unusual way.

"Shut up!" Klaus roared and Caroline winched.

"_Aww, does it hurt to know I'm not going to be there anymore? Not going to be there to pick up the pieces? To see to your needs when she rejects you_?" Tatia cooed, her hair falling across her right eye, her mouth twisted into a pout.

"Well just tell her, Klaus! Tell her you don't want to be with her anymore!" Caroline demanded. She was standing across the room from him, her hair in a loose bun with a few stands slipping out to breeze across her face.

"I've told you, I've took care of it already Caroline! Please stop!" he sank against the wall in defeat. Why should she believe him? He'd lied to her before, why should she feel like now was any different from the other times.

Caroline's eyes remained cold. "Your solution is to just run away?" she asked in horror. She couldn't believe he had no intention of truly ending it with Tatia, had no intention of confronting her face to face. "You just want to run? How can I know that when we get to wherever it is that you want us to run, she won't be there too?"

"_Bet it sucks to see my face everywhere. To still feel my touch on your skin, to hear my voice always_." Tatia sat down between them on the edge of the sofa. Unlike Caroline, her hair hung loose around her shoulders. It was long and fell down to her mid-back, wet as though she'd just gotten out of the shower. Klaus' stomach churned.

"I hate her," Caroline declared. "I hate what she's doing to us. I hate how you come to me when she turns you away."

"It's her own fault she is where she is." Klaus mumbled to himself.

"_You were the one who chose to end it the way you did_!" Tatia jumped up from the sofa, anger coming off her in waves as she walked a few steps from them. "You knew what you would do." She whispered to herself before turning to face him. "_You knew exactly what you would do!_" she cried in realisation.

"Caroline," Klaus moved so fast that she had no time to react before he had her firmly in his arms. "I got lost. What I really want is right here. Right now."

"And Tatia?" Caroline asked in a low voice as her eyes cast about the room.

"Forget her."

"_Don't say you lost your way_." Tatia mocked him before standing beside Caroline. "_He'll pull you in. You'll see, but then it will be too late and you'll end up like me_." She whispered into Caroline's ear before stepping back to look at the woman's expression. "_I can see it in her face_!" she was horrified, her voice pained. "_She believes you_!" and with that he turned on her heel and disappeared like a wisp of smoke through the large oak door as Klaus' lips fell with crashing force onto Caroline's.

**~**~Earlier~**~**

Tatia tore through his room in a hurricane of anger. She started on one side and made her way to the other, pulling things off shelves, tipping over chairs and ripping through drawings. "If she really knows the truth, knows what you're like." She spat as she began pulling shirts from their hangers. "She deserves you and everything she's going to get!"

She made her way to the large wooden desk and pulled open the drawer. Inside was a mass of crinkled pieces of paper and drawings. She reached in and grabbed a handful, throwing the contents of her fist onto the bed which had been stripped of its sheets. As she went for another fistful, a flash of colour caught her eyes and she stopped to pick up the picture.

She ran her fingers over the image, closed her eyes and sank onto the bed. "How fucking cute – a trophy wife," she lulled as she stared at the two of them. "You can mount her and stare at her expressionless face all day!" she sneered.

She put on hand on each side of the photo and in a violent action ripped it in half. "You're made for each other, after all, ignorance is bliss…you'll ignore me and she'll ignore what you really are!" she cried as she grabbed the pile of paper from the bed and threw it into the fire.

She picked up one of the crinkled notes, seeing it was addressed to Klaus. She began to read, recognising her golden haired rivals handwriting. "But when it's her turn," she said to the name at the bottom of the letter. "And you tire of her too," she laughed; a painful ripping from her throat that verged on tears. "You'll find yourself standing alone at the side of an empty road." She crumpled the letter and made her way closer to the fireplace. "Love Caroline," it said. "I'll be the one to crash right into you!" she cried as she thrust it into the flames. She made her way back to the trunk and sank to her knees as tears came to her eyes.

"You may die together, but you'll always be alone." She whispered, throwing another picture of the two of them into the fire.

She picked up another picture to find a handsome sandy haired man smirking up at her. "I didn't read your last letter, I knew what it would say." She whispered sadly to the occupant of the image. "Meaningless words on paper. I burnt it because I wanted to hear your words, but you couldn't say them to my face!"

Feeling she was getting nowhere fast she stood up and grasped the drawers handles before hauling it towards the fire. "Give me an answer that will take this pain away!" she mocked the contents of the drawer as she tipped it into the fire. "Make _me_ feel okay!"

**~**~Later~**~**

"I'm in here!" Tatia called as she heard footsteps enter the room.

Klaus entered the bathroom with a frown on his face. "What are you doing in my tub?"

Tatia smiled coyly at him, bubbles dripping off her body as she extended her arms to him. "Bathing." She replied innocently.

He didn't move forward. "We're done, you know that." He said coldly.

Tatia felt a rush of anger through her veins at his words. "What do you mean?" she whispered.

"It's you or her. Caroline is threatening to leave me if I don't leave you. I need her or I won't be welcome here anymore."

"You're going to leave me because that little bitch told you too?

"Did you hear me? If she leaves she'll tell Damon about what's been going on and he won't hesitate in killing me."

"I'll tell…" she whispered into the bubbles before blowing a few of them into the air.

"What?"

"I'll tell her what you are," she threatened. "I'll tell her you're double-crossing her and the rest of your little _family_. I'll tell if you leave me."

"Shut up, Tatia. You and I both know those are empty threats," he turned to the rail next to the sink and grabbed the towel draped there. He held it out for her to take. "Now get out of the tub and I'll help you dry off."

She didn't move, her eyes glittering. "You're not ending this; I am."

"I set get out, Tatia." His voice was low and rumbled in his throat as his knuckles gripped the towel tighter.

"Do you think it will hurt—?" she asked as she absentmindedly played with the bubbles that were slowly beginning to pop and disappear.

"I don't have time for your games. Get out now."

"—When you realise I'm not going to be here?" she continued, ignoring him. If he wanted to get under her skin, she'd get under his in the only way she had left. She had so little power left over him. "You won't forget me. You'll never truly get rid of me. Even when you're stood all alone, I'll always be here."

"I'm not besotted. You have your means and that's it. Get. Out. Of. The. Tub." He was beginning to shake with anger at her defiance.

She noted his reaction and played it off. She knew she was toying with fire, but her heart was breaking and she wanted to stir up some emotion within him to equal the one within her. If that emotion was anger, so be it. "You know this isn't my fault." She reminded him, imply he shouldn't be bothered by her reaction if it was what he truly wanted. He had after all been the one who decided things needed to end between them.

"If you don't get out of there now you will regret it." His voice was demonic, his deep blue eyes fixed on hers, fire burning inside them.

"I can't help wondering though," she said quietly. "Why am I the last to know?" there was no way out. There was no way she could stand up and wrap herself in the towel he held out to her. No way she could let him lead her into the next room and fall onto the bed and in his arms one last time. Not now. "You knew," she said. "Exactly what you would do the night we met." She was crying now. His excuses piling up in her mind. "You knew from the second you we laid eyes on each other."

"You're making this difficult for no one but yourself."

"She might believe you when you tell her everything's okay, when you tell her you love her and we're no more." Her voice was nothing but a whisper as she raised her eyes and saw his. "But I'll never let you go. I'll always be around…always."

His hands were around her throat before she had the chance to register what was happening. He pushed her beneath the water. **I'll never hear you**. There was little fight left in her, her breath leaving her body so easily. She kicked, water splashing over the floor. **I won't miss you**. She couldn't push his hands away. **I won't run to you**. She couldn't break the surface of the water. **Never**.

His hands didn't release from her throat. **I won't kiss you**. Bubbles erupted from her mouth as she opened it in a scream, sucking in water. **I won't want you**. The bubbles stopped. She stopped. All he saw was a searing white. **I'll never love you**. He left here there in the tub, one arm draped over the side and ran. **Never again**.

**~**~Present~**~**

"Klaus, stop." Caroline pushed him away but he pursued her. He followed her all the way to the door that led to his room and then around his bed until she found herself cornered. She back away from him and in doing so found herself against the bathroom door. He was coming closer, a fire burning in his eyes. There was only one way she could escape. She reached back and turned the knob, falling backwards into the bathroom.

The floor was wet. As she lifted her hand from the marble tile, water tricked off it. The back of her jeans were soaked through as she picked herself up from the floor. Klaus stood before her with a look of horror on his face. She followed his gaze until it fell on the body floating in the water, dark hair circulating their face like mist. She screamed.

Klaus grabbed her arm and hauled her from the bathroom and his room, slamming both doors behind them. He stalked to the fireplace. She remained still, tears brimming in her eye as she stared at the monster that stood across the room from her.

"I'm going to walk out that door right now and you won't stop me." She stated with as much courage as she could muster, her voice shaking.

"Like hell I won't." Klaus stormed over and grabbed her arm.

She ripped it away from his grasp, her small knife appearing in her hand. "Does it hurt?"

"Does what hurt?" he snarled.

She moved, putting the sofa between them. "Now that you know I'm not going to be here anymore."

"I'll get over it." He replied sarcastically, but really he was hurting, the fear of her leaving him weighing heavy on his heart.

"To know you're going to see my face everywhere and realise what you had."

"I'm not lovesick, Forbes. Any woman would kill for one night with me."

"_One night is what killed me_." The voice was nothing but a distant whisper as it echoed around the room.

"One night is what killed me too." Caroline said, causing him to jump slightly. Could she hear it too? "How could you?" Killing the happy, spontaneous, energetic Caroline Forbes was something she could forgive, but killing someone in cold-blood, she couldn't get her head around it.

He envisioned Tatia standing behind Caroline, water streaming off her body.

"It wasn't my fault," he said calmly, sitting on the sofa and propping his feet up onto the coffee table. "She threatened me."

"_You knew_—" Tatia's voice whispered in his ear.

He jumped as her icy breath danced across his skin. He looked around but she was gone.

"I'm turning you over to Damon, Klaus." Caroline said as she grabbed her coat from the back of the sofa. She couldn't believe what she'd just seen. "You've killed her, our connection, our only connection to the Petrova's."

"—_exactly what you would do_." Tatia's voice continued in his other ear. He turned in shock to find her sitting next to him on the sofa, her hair dripping wet.

"Are you listening to me, Mikaelson?" Caroline called to him from the doorway. She was looking right at the sofa but she didn't see it. Klaus turned back to look at Tatia, but no one was there. He jumped up from the sofa and slowly backed away from it, running his hands frantically through his hair.

"Just go!" he yelled, his voice turned manic. "Just leave me alone!" his yells were intended for Tatia, but Caroline, not seeing the Demon in his mind, believed it was directed at her.

"Don't worry, I am." She said. "Damon's on his way. He was afraid for me to come over here to begin with after I told him I suspected you were cheating on me with her." Caroline closed her eyes in disbelief as the image of the body in the tub rose up in her mind.

"_Niklaus, what are you going to do now_?" this time the voice came from his feet. He looked down to find her curled up in a ball on hr size, her eyes fixed on his. A pool of water surrounded her, soaking his shoes. "_They may believe you_," she hissed. "_But I never will_."

"I didn't do anything!" he yelled, going into hysterics. "I had no choice! I was protecting myself! Protecting us!"

"They may believe you." Caroline said. "But I never will. I'll leave Damon to decide what he wants to do with you." She had seen the body. She had read the letters. They might believe he did it to protect himself, but after piecing the evidence together, she knew better.

She knew he was a traitor, she knew he used her to keep himself protected – accepted. She knew he'd killed Tatia because his secret was about to be revealed. She knew it all.

"_I never will_." Tatia's voice whispered in his ear again. Her hand cold on his shoulder. "_But I'll always be here_."

Caroline left the room, slamming the door behind her. Klaus looked to his left where the voice had come from, only to realise that no one was there. His eyes then drifted to his shoulder where her hand had sat, only to find a large wet spot; the water slowly creeping down his arm as she kept her hold on him.

Klaus was alone, just as Tatia had predicted – He was standing alone, but she was there. He knew she was there.

"I'm always going to be haunted." Klaus whispered, lightly touching the wet patch on his shoulder. "By the ghost of you."

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading! xo<strong>


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